Cache Manager

Read | Write

The Cache Manager allows you to save animated deformations or simulations into point cache files, as well as load point cache files into the animation mixer.

A point cache file contains the point position data of an object that is simulated or has animated deformations. This type of point cache file stores only the XYZ positions of an object's points (vertices) in local (or global) space, but not the object's transform data (translation, rotation, or scale) in its Kinematics node.

For information on using the cache manager, see The Cache Manager.

To display:

Choose View Animation Cache Manager from the main menu.
Choose Tools Plot Cache Manager from the Animate toolbar.
Choose Particles Simulation Cache Manager from the ICE toolbar.

NoteTo change the default path used at creation, file name syntax, and file format used for the cache files, see the File Cache Path Template options in the Simulation Preferences.

Read

On this tab, you can load point cache files or .cacheslist files into the animation mixer for selected objects.

For general information, see Reading Cache Files.

Add to Cache List

Opens a browser in which you can select a cache or .cacheslist file to be added to the Cache List.

A .cacheslist file contains multiple caches used for multiple objects.

Cache List	The list of all cache files to be read and loaded into the animation mixer for each of the objects in the Apply to Objects list.
Apply to Objects	The list of objects in the scene to which you want to apply the cache files. These objects can be the same objects for which you created the cache files, or other objects to which you want to apply the cache files. If you're loading a cache file onto a different object, the number of points on this object must match the number of points that were on the object whose data was cached.
Up	Moves the selected cache files or objects up in their respective list.
Down	Moves the selected cache files or objects down in their respective list.
Remove	Removes the selected cache files or objects from their respective list.
Clear	Clears all items in the list.
Add	Adds the currently selected objects to the Apply to Objects list.
Apply All	Reads and loads the cache files in the Cache List into the animation mixer for each object's model in the Apply to Objects list. If there is simulation on the object when you click Apply, you can choose to either remove or keep the simulation — see Reading Cache Files for more information.

Dump Header

Dumps the selected cache file's header and attribute description in an .xml file, then opens the result in the Netview. This works for cache files that are in ICEcache or nCache format.

This is a handy tool to inform you of what's in the cache file that you're reading.

Reset Animation

All Transforms

Before the cache file is applied to the target object, this option resets all its transformation values to their default values (0 for translation and rotation, 1 for scaling). This is useful for reading cache files that have been written using global space (by selecting the Baked Animation - All Transforms option on the Write tab).

When you apply a "global space" cache file on an object, that object should be at the global origin (0,0,0) in the scene.

After you have read and applied a cache file, this information is displayed in gray below the Cache List and Apply to Objects list:

Created Sources	Displays the name of the cache file sources that have been created for the models' Mixer nodes.
Applied on Objects	Displays the names of the objects to which the cache files have been applied.

Scene Animation Cache Path

After you have read and applied a cache file, this table gives you feedback about which scene objects have which cache file applied to them and whether or not that object or file is valid.

You can load different cache files or edit their path strings, or use the buttons to do things like open the animation mixer, select scene objects, or delete file cache sources and clips.

Table

Objects	The names of the objects to which the cache files have been applied.
User Path (Usr)	The path defined for the location of the cache files.
Valid	States whether the cache file is valid or invalid. A cache file is considered valid if it can be found on the disk. The rows for cache files that are valid are displayed in gray, while the rows for invalid ones are red.
Resolved Path (Res)	The actual path of the loaded cache file.

Buttons

Use the buttons above the table to perform various functions.

Select Scene Objects	Select one or more rows in the table, then click this button to select the corresponding objects in the scene. To select rows, click the leftmost cell of one or more rows in the table so that they turn green.
Open Mixer	Select one or more rows in the table, then click this button to open the animation mixer for the corresponding objects' models. Each model has its own Mixer.
Browse Selected Path	Select one or more rows in the table, then click this button to open a browser in which you can select a new cache file to be loaded for the selected objects.
Search and Replace	Select one or more rows in the table, then click this button to open the Search and Replace Strings in Path dialog box. In the File Type text box, select the type of files whose entries you want to modify (such as All, Scenes, or Models). Changing the file type updates the list of files to be modified, which appear at the bottom of the dialog box. In the String to Search text box, enter the text string to search for in the existing path and file names. In the String to Replace text box, enter the replacement text. Select the Case Sensitive option if you want to search and replace using the specific capitalization you've entered in the String to Search box.
Delete Sources/Clips	Select one or more rows in the table, then click this button to remove them from the table. This deletes the file cache source from the object's model, as well as its corresponding file cache clip in the animation mixer.
Delete Unused Sources	Select one or more rows in the table, then click this button to remove any unused file cache sources from the object's model.

Write

On this tab, you can create point cache files for objects from these types of simulations and animations:

Animated deformations (any type, including envelopes)
ICE simulations (particles and deformations, Lagoa, and Syflex ICE) and animated deformations. ICE attributes are also cached.
Soft body and cloth simulations (Non-ICE Syflex is not supported)

A point cache file contains the point position data of an object. This type of point cache file stores only the XYZ positions of an object's points (vertices) in local (or global) space, but not the object's transform data (translation, rotation, or scale) in its Kinematics node.

You can also create Caches List (.cacheslist) files that help you manage how you create multiple cache files for multiple objects.

For general information, see Writing Cache Files.

Click these tabs to see the different Write options:

Caching Files Tab

Path	Enter the path for where the cache file will be saved. Click the browse (...) button to select a different path. This path is automatically set according to the Default Path option that is set in the Simulation Preferences.
Tokens	Opens the help topic for Tokens and Templates so that you can see which tokens are available to add to the Path or File Name syntax. You can add any of the universal tokens, in addition to the caching tokens. At creation, the tokens used in the Path and File Name are automatically set according to what's used in the Simulation Preferences.
File Name	Name of the cache file to be saved. This is the syntax: [object]_[version]_[frame] To add frame padding to the frame numbers, see the description for the [Frame] token in Tokens and Templates for more information.
Version	Enter any string to identify this version of the cache file, such as Take1 or A, B, C, and so on. This is used in the File Name.
Format	The format of the cache file. You can choose from: ICECache (.icecache) PointCache2 (.pc2) NCache (.xml) Custom. Enter its file extension in the text box beside this one. See Cache File Formats for more information. The default format is set by the Cache Type in the Simulation Preferences.
Write Cache	Caches the specified frames into the file that you have selected, as displayed in gray in the Resolved Path.
Resolved Path	Displays the current path and file name to use for the cache file. This is for display purposes only.

Objects

List	The list of all objects whose animation or simulation you want to write in a cache file. Each object in this list will have its own cache file. You can also add all the objects in this list to a .cacheslist file to manage multiple objects and their cache files — see Caches List Options on the Additional Options tab.
Add Selection	Select one or more objects in the scene, then click this button to add them to the list of objects for caching. You can also branch-select a parent object, then click this button to add it and its children to the Object list.
Pick	Activates the picking tool for selecting an object in the scene to add to the Objects list. You can pick only one object at a time. You can also branch-select a parent object, then click this button, and pick the parent object to add it and its children to the Object list.
Remove	Select one or more objects in the Object list, then click this button to remove them from the list.

Additional Options Tab

Start	The frame at which to begin plotting to the cache file.
End	The frame at which to end plotting to the cache file.
Step	The frame step increments to use. When this value is 1, every frame is plotted; when 2, every other frame is plotted, and so on.

Attributes

Displays a list of ICE attributes for the object to be included in the plotted simulation for the cache file. These are the attributes that are used in the object's ICE tree and in the render tree for rendering.

If you want to see which attributes were cached for a cache file when you're reading it, click the Dump Header button on the Read tab.

For more information, see Setting ICE Attributes for Caching.

Available

The list of all available attributes for the selected objects.

When you select an object in the Objects list, its attributes are highlighted in this list and in the To Cache list. This lets you easily see which attributes belong to which object.

Note that custom attributes do not appear in this list unless they are used in the scene. A custom attribute needs to be used before it can be defined, and only defined attributes show up in the Available list.

To Cache

The list of attributes that will be cached for the selected objects. Softimage automatically makes sure that all required attributes are included here for the objects in the Object list.

However, if you want to cache only specific attributes, you can do so by moving attributes out of the To Cache list and into the Available list. Only the attributes in the To Cache will be cached into the file.

See Selecting Which ICE Attributes to Cache for details.

Move

Select one or more attributes in the Available or To Cache lists, then click the appropriate Move arrow (>> or <<) to move the selected attributes between the Available and To Cache lists.

Caches List Options

Create Caches List

Creates a .cacheslist file that includes all the objects in the Objects list above.

A .cacheslist file allows you to create and manage multiple cache files for multiple objects — see Creating Cacheslist Files for Multiple Objects for more information.

File Name

Enter a name for the .cacheslist file to be created.

The path and file name of this file are displayed in gray below and are for display only.

Baked Animation

All Transforms

Allows you to cache an object's point position in global space. This means that the object's points are cached relative to the world's center instead of being relative to the object's center.

For example, if an object has a simulated deformation, but is also transforming (such as a classic "squash and stretch" deformation on a bouncing ball that's moving across the floor), both the object's deformation and its movement in global space are cached.

When you apply a "global space" cache file on an object, that object should be at the global origin (0,0,0) in the scene. Also, select the Reset Animation - All Transforms option on the Read tab to reset the object's transformation values to the defaults.

Simulation

The Simulation Time Control Property Editor appears in the Cache Manager when you click the Simulation tab at the top of the Cache Manager window.

Click the Caching Files tab at the top of this property editor to find the caching options.

For ICE simulations: You can create point cache files, simulation environment caches, and cache file sources and clips - see Creating ICE Simulation Environment Cache Files for information. Simulation environment caches allow you to play the simulation backwards and scrub through it.
For non-ICE rigid body simulations: You can create simulation environment caches and action sources and clips - see Caching Non-ICE Rigid Body Simulations for information.